Update 5-29-2020

The City of Silverton is preparing to gradually open City Hall pending Marion County’s approval for Phase II. Therefore, the earliest possible date for public access to City Hall would be Friday, June 12; when opening is possible, physical distancing requirements will be in effect, appointments will be encouraged at all times and the City plans for the front doors to be open daily from 10am-2pm. Updates will be posted here and on Facebook.

The City is planning with attention to the health and safety of all employees and community members. The most recent version of our Reopening Quick Guide is shared here to provide more detail on our planning.

The latest COVID-19 information is on this page and you can also find all staff contacts here.

Update 5-21-2020

Governor Brown announced Marion County meets the prerequisites to enter into Phase 1 of reopening effective Friday, May 22. Marion County has created a Reopening page which has material and guides available for businesses as they begin to reopen. The health and safety of our citizens is at the forefront as the County works to safely reopen. At this time City Hall will remain closed to the public as we work to ensure the safety of our staff and residents. Please continue to contact us through email and over the phone. Staff will continue to post updates about City facilities and programming to the City’s website as they become available.

City Parks, Pool & Trails Update

Public Works is working hard to safely reopen a limited number of public spaces during phase 1, for the latest information visit the Parks & Recreation page.

Update 5-20-2020

In accordance with Governor Brown’s Executive Order 20-25, beginning Thursday, May 21 individuals must wear a face covering when riding public transit (Silver Trolley), unless the individual:

Is under two years of age;

Has a medical condition that makes it hard to breathe when wearing a face covering; or

Has a disability that prevents the individual from wearing a face covering.

Update 5-5-2020

City of Silverton Municipal Court scheduled for Wednesday, May 13th and 20th, 2020 has been postponed to help slow the spread of COVID-19 and reduce opportunities for continued transmission of the virus. Your court date will be rescheduled and a letter was mailed with your updated court date and time to appear along with additional options on how to take care of your ticket before your new appearance date.http://www.silverton.or.us/courtpaymentCall 503-873-5321 #1

Update 4-7-2020

The Silver Trolley is limiting operations to Monday, Wednesday, Friday and only transporting symptom-free individuals for essential needs such as non-emergency and non-COVID-19 related doctor’s appointments, grocery shopping, prescription pick-up, trips to do laundry, etc.

For the safety of our drivers and the public, the dispatchers will be asking screening questions of all potential riders prior to confirming rides.

Update 4-6-2020

Cherriots is starting a new temporary reduced service on Tuesday, April 7. It will operate Monday-Saturday with most local routes running hourly between 7 a.m. and 6 p.m. View all of the schedules at www.Cherriots.org/temporaryservice.

Update 3-30-2020

The City of Silverton enacted a temporary policy on March 27, 2020 in response to COVID-19 and the impact it has on the safety of our residents. From March 27 onward, the City will not disconnect services for non-payment of utility bills. The City will also suspend charging late fees, monthly interest charges, and administrative fees for delinquent accounts. The City recognizes the importance of having water to combat the COVID-19 virus.

Republic Services announces temporary changes to their recycling and waste services. These changes include temporarily suspending bulky waste pick-up and closing the Silverton Recycling Depot. To read the full notification, click here.

Update 3-26-2020

The City of Silverton understands the tremendous impact the COVID-19 emergency is having on our local businesses. Please follow this link for additional resources on the Silverton Business Development Center page.

Update 3-25-2020

Questions about drinking water and COVID-19? The Oregon Health Authority has determined that treated drinking water is safe to consume. Please visit the link below for answers to this and other frequently asked questions.

Update 3-24-2020

On Monday, March 23, 2020 Governor Kate Brown released Executive Order 20-12, updating orders for individuals, businesses, public organizations and outdoors spaces:

All non-essential social and recreational gatherings of individuals are prohibited immediately, regardless of size, if a distance of at least six feet between individuals cannot be maintained. Gatherings of members of the same residential household are permitted.

It closes and prohibits shopping at specific categories of retail businesses, for which close personal contact is difficult to avoid, such as arcades, barber shops, hair salons, gyms and fitness studios, skating rinks, theaters, and yoga studios.

It requires businesses not closed by the order to implement social distancing policies in order to remain open, and requires workplaces to implement teleworking and work-at-home options when possible.

It directs Oregonians to stay home whenever possible, while permitting activities outside the home when social distance is maintained.

It closes playgrounds, sports courts, and skate parks, among other types of outdoor recreation facilities. Those that remain open are required to strictly adhere to social distancing guidelines.

It outlines new guidelines for child care facilities, setting limits and rules on amounts of children allowed in care, and outlining that child care groups may not change participants.

Failure to comply with the order will be considered an immediate danger to public health and subject to a Class C misdemeanor.

Retail businesses closed by Executive Order 20-12 include:

Shopping: Outdoor and indoor malls and retail complexes, although individual types of businesses not subject to the measures may stay open.

Update 3-23-2020

City of Silverton Declares a State of Emergency

The Mayor has declared a state of emergency pursuant to Chapter 2.44 of the Silverton Municipal Code, beginning March 23, 2020 and ending May 4, 2020. City Council will adopt a resolution mirroring and superseding this declaration on April 6, 2020.

The declaration allows the City additional flexibility in terms of limiting access to public buildings, directing City staff, activating the Emergency Management Organization (EMO), and delegating resources as well as acquiring needed resources related to health and safety.

Having conferred with the City Manager and City Council members, the Mayor finds that COVID-19 is a public health crisis that threatens the health, safety, and welfare of the City and the City’s citizens and constitutes an imminent threat of illness, human suffering, financial loss, and/or loss of life and the Mayor finds that COVID-19 necessitates a state of emergency declaration.

Update 3-17-2020

City Hall Closed to the Public Beginning March 18

In an effort to help slow the spread of COVID-19 and support the health of the community, the City of Silverton will temporarily close City Hall to the public beginning Wednesday, March 18. This closure will be in effect until further notice.

City of Silverton Municipal Court arraignments scheduled for 4:30 PM on Wednesday, March 18, 2020 and trials and arraignments scheduled for Wednesday, April 8, 2020 have been postponed. Your court date will be rescheduled and you will receive a letter in the mail with your updated court date and time to appear along with additional options on how to take care of your ticket before your new appearance date.

Update 3-13-2020

Please see the attached Press Release dated March 13, 2020 – the contents of which are posted here as well.

As we all deal with the daily evolution of COVID-19 concerns, we want to give you an update on what the City is doing with respect to this issue. At this point, we are not cancelling City Council and committee meetings unless they have limited non-urgent items, but we are encouraging interested citizens to remember that all regular City Council and Planning Commission meetings are normally televised on SCAN-TV, and audio is posted following all non-televised meetings, offering you an alternative to attending in person. Of course, we’re not yet discouraging attendance, but do want to you be aware of all options for being engaged in the process. Testimony may be submitted for any matter by emailing directly to publiccomment@silverton.or.us or by dropping off written testimony at City Hall.

Additionally, we are exploring the option of televising scheduled work sessions in the future, but we have CANCELLED the work session scheduled for Monday, March 16th as we were not able to proceed with the scheduled topic that night. The Urban Renewal Meeting on March 16th will be moved to 6 pm and we are awaiting notice whether we can televise this meeting. If not, the audio recording will be posted on our website following the meeting.

In terms of public events conducted by private organizations, those decisions are up to the organizers and mandates provided by the Governor’s office. We encourage everyone to take seriously the habits and decisions that are made daily that can either contribute to this health concern, or help make your exposure less likely. Common sense advice has been provided by the Oregon Health Authority on multiple occasions and the City actively monitors those recommendations.

With respect to City operations, City staff is taking precautions and has plans in place depending on several variables. The health of our staff and continuation of services to our citizens is a priority and finding ways to maximize both during this evolving public health concern is vital to our leadership team. We have increased our cleaning and disinfection of public areas in our facilities; much of which has been employee led. We have also issued a temporary administrative policy that sets out our practice in a number of areas, including leave availability for COVID-19 related absences, providing opportunities for employees to work remotely if their position allows for it, and setting out requirements for reporting any diagnosis or potential exposure that could be a direct impact to others within the organization or the general public. In addition, we have activated a “pandemic team” to address information as it becomes available and we distribute to our staff and the community. Our management team also continues to be actively involved in the decision making as it impacts operations in our city departments.

As of this message, there have been no residents diagnosed with COVID-19 that we have been officially notified of (we have been asked this by citizens) and because of privacy issues, we may not be notified unless the information is distributed to the public at large. We will continue to update the public as things change moving forward and will be as transparent as possible in advising the public.

Update 3-4-2020

Prepare, don’t panic. As the Local Public Health Authority, Marion County Health and Human Services has added information to their website to keep residents up-to-speed with accurate information. This site will be updated regularly and includes a helpful FAQ.